Bruins let Brian Ferlin skip development camp

Ferlin is working out in the area, but the Bruins were comfortable with letting him stay away from the Ristuccia Arena ice this week.

By Dan CagenDaily News staff

WILMINGTON — Although he is not participating in this year’s development camp — it would have been his fourth — Brian Ferlin did come in to visit his fellow Bruins prospects Friday.

“He actually popped by here today to say hello to the guys,” assistant general manager Don Sweeney said. “He's going to come by Fenway tomorrow. Which actually tells you a lot about him, to tell you the truth. He wants to be around guys that he's sort of developed friendships with.”

Ferlin is working out in the area, but the Bruins were comfortable with letting him stay away from the Ristuccia Arena ice this week.

“We've monitored Brian since we drafted him and he's been at a number of camps,” Sweeney said. “Maturity-wise, development-wise, he's in a good place for working out. I talked to his strength and conditioning coach. He's in a phase of his program that maybe it'll be more conducive to stay on that program as he has his eye on the prize in September, to tell you the truth. … But we feel good about where he is development wise. We've given him video pieces for homework that he can focus on, so he'll be fine.”

Ferlin was a fourth-round selection (121st overall) in 2011. The right wing has played the past three seasons at Cornell University and posted totals of 13 goals and 14 assists in 32 games for the Big Red last year.

In April, Ferlin signed his entry-level contract, forgoing his senior season. He finished out the school year in Ithaca, so he did not play for the Providence Bruins.

He is expected to be at rookie and main camp in September. The Bruins think highly of the winger, and Sweeney hinted that Ferlin is in the group of forwards competing to fill out two open roster spots in the team’s bottom-six rotation. Others in contention include Alexander Khokhlachev, Ryan Spooner, Matt Fraser, Matt Lindblad, Seth Griffith and Craig Cunningham.

The Bruins are in desperate need of more right-hand shots in their forward group. Ferlin is a righty, and only Cunningham and Griffith are right-handed of the group listed, which could be an advantage for Ferlin.